The Mobius Nature of Landscape

"River landscape with Riders." Aelbert Cuyp, 1655.

What does the word “landscape” mean? The term does not refer to simply natural elements or to just to the physical space around us.

"The Mill at Wijk near Duurstede."
Jacob van Ruisdael, 1670

The term originated in the 16^th century.  “Lantskap” is a Dutch term used by painters to describe artists’ perceptions of their surroundings. Landscape is established when human perception looks beyond itself, to discover a moment of recognition that shapes our identity. It represents the interface between human thought, actions, and the biophysical. Landscape is never static!

I find it interesting that the very etymology of landscape is engrained with human’s influences upon nature. The term originated in the Netherlands, which is a landform that exists because of human engineering. The term in its very nature implies a unit of human occupation and integration within our environment.

Möbius strip.

Landscape encompasses the interaction between: ecology, time, and culture. The interwoven natural and human processes, both intentional and accidental, that create distinctive patterns on the world's surface. Studying the patterns of interaction shed light upon our individual values and cultural attitudes. Our identity is formed by the möbius nature of landscape. Place shapes culture, meanwhile as Simon Schama put it, "everything in nature is imprinted by our tenacious obsessions." Exploring our relationship with landscape is an invitation for self-reflection.

A prairie girl's first introduction to the North Sea off the coast of Holland.